She's Five at Riverside - A September 2014 Trip Report (Completed 2/27)

[PrincessL189]

Oh she is so cute! Love reading about your trip!!

 

[Wood Nymph]

Congratulations on the OKW trip! We just visited there for the first time this trip and really liked it. It has a nice laid back feel, and the boat ride to DTD is even shorter than from POR. We'd love to stay there some day, and can't wait to hear more about it.

That sounds good. We are just taking a really short three night stay. I'm hoping we can take the boat to DTD, but not sure we can fit it in.

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Oh she is so cute! Love reading about your trip!!

Welcome! We're glad to have you here following along. You'll find that reading about trips really does help pass the time until you get to be there, and hopefully you'll find some more ideas about neat things to do as well. We sure have.

That sounds good. We are just taking a really short three night stay. I'm hopping we can take the boat to DTD, but not sure we can fit it in.

Ahh yeah, three days might feel rushed, but ti is always great to get another WDW trip in. We aren't even sure when we are going to DL next, we've just been so busy. OKW really should be nice though, even if your trip is too short for kicking back and relaxing.

 

[ElsasMom]

I love that birthday hair do. I noticed it was a bow earlier, but not the detail in the middle until just now. Very pretty. It is easier than it looks?

Please tell me that you acquired your giant Stitch since the trip. I know you already said he didn't come home with you this round, but you got him since that right? You belong together

 

[WDWKOOK]

Those night shots turned out nicely. That was one really fun-filled birthday and it ended on a high note with dinner. So sweet of the CM to take Allie to write her own name on the button. Excellent penmanship

Does Allie still play with the tea set? Sometimes after those things get taken out of the box, they have a tendency to get scattered.

I recall we loved BDH for breakfast and it's a shame they don't offer it anymore. It was tasty and I remember that you would "set" your own table. Do they still do that at dinner?

 

[Sisa]

If your DD enjoyed Tom Sawyer island at DL she should love it at WDW. The fort is open and you can climb through it and go out an escape tunnel. There are more bridges, trails, and caves too, so enjoy.

Allie really likes the kids area at Blizzard Beach, and probably liked it a little more than Typhoon Lagoon last year. This year she loved the tube slide at Typhoon Lagoon more because it winds around more. We found lighter crowds at TL so we liked that, but the big central wave pool was too scary for Allie, so just for her if we had to pick one it would probably be BB.

Thanks so much for following along and your kind comments on the pictures. We sure enjoy sharing them.

Oh boy, thanks for the info on Tom Sawyer Island. We had a hard time getting her to leave the DL one, sounds like it will be even tougher in WDW.

I appreciate your feedback on the water parks. We stayed in the Paradise Pier Hotel in DL and my DD loved the slide. She really wants to do some more kiddie type water slides. I think she might be afraid of the wave pool too.

Update response...

Oh I love how Allie had to write her own name on her button, and she did a marvelous job!

How sweet of the waitress to decorate a balloon for Allie and brought beads! Very special!

Sounds like a great birthday dinner, I may have to look into this restaurant a little more. The cheesecake looks amazing!

Glad you were able to just make the boat back back, Melissa.

Oh poor little tuckered Allie. I am with you Melissa, I want that Stitch too!

Love the star burst shot!

 

[TeamSy]

POR looks so nice! We've always wanted to try it out!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

I love that birthday hair do. I noticed it was a bow earlier, but not the detail in the middle until just now. Very pretty. It is easier than it looks?

Please tell me that you acquired your giant Stitch since the trip. I know you already said he didn't come home with you this round, but you got him since that right? You belong together

The hair bow isn't as bad as it looks. Melissa found the info for it online here.

We tried to get the Stitch, but they don't seem to have it at the resorts or parks here in California. It also isn't available online, so when we get back to WDW I think we will need to plan on an extra suitcase on the way home.

Those night shots turned out nicely. That was one really fun-filled birthday and it ended on a high note with dinner. So sweet of the CM to take Allie to write her own name on the button. Excellent penmanship

Does Allie still play with the tea set? Sometimes after those things get taken out of the box, they have a tendency to get scattered.

I recall we loved BDH for breakfast and it's a shame they don't offer it anymore. It was tasty and I remember that you would "set" your own table. Do they still do that at dinner?

One other CM had let Allie draw on her own button and she loved it, so she asked to do it at dinner.

She does still play with the tea set, or at least the parts of it that are around and conveniently available. She has a few other sets and the pieces all kind of merge together.

There wasn't anything different about setting the table at Boatwrights for dinner. We would have loved to do breakfast there if they still did it. Oh well.

Oh boy, thanks for the info on Tom Sawyer Island. We had a hard time getting her to leave the DL one, sounds like it will be even tougher in WDW.

I appreciate your feedback on the water parks. We stayed in the Paradise Pier Hotel in DL and my DD loved the slide. She really wants to do some more kiddie type water slides. I think she might be afraid of the wave pool too.

Update response...

Oh I love how Allie had to write her own name on her button, and she did a marvelous job!

How sweet of the waitress to decorate a balloon for Allie and brought beads! Very special!

Sounds like a great birthday dinner, I may have to look into this restaurant a little more. The cheesecake looks amazing!

Glad you were able to just make the boat back back, Melissa.

Oh poor little tuckered Allie. I am with you Melissa, I want that Stitch too!

Love the star burst shot!

You really can't go wrong with the WDW waterparks. It will be fun.

Boatwrights was very nice, and worth the trip over to POR. If you don't do a sit down meal the food court is really nice too, especially at off peak times.

Thanks, we enjoyed the night shots too.

POR looks so nice! We've always wanted to try it out!

We really did enjoy POR. WL has always been amazing, and is worth a little more to us (especially during a downpour), but we wouldn't hesitate to stay at POR again. We love the quiet rural feel of these resorts.

 

[MissMaryQC]

I’m so sorry to hear about Melissa’s grandfather. It’s wonderful that Allie was able to really know him. I’m sure the mourning process has been rough; I wish your family as much peace in this as possible.

I love Allie’s birthday button! All the little hearts are so sweet. She is such a photogenic little girl.

The red Velvet cake looks delicious! I’ve heard such great things about Boatwrights, I’m glad your experience was so wonderful.

I’m glad you were able to recover your things! That could have ended quite badly.

I like Allie’s pirate imitation. Something about that boat ride is like a lullaby, for big kids too; I doze off every time.

That Stitch is TOO cute!

Glad Allie had such a great fifth birthday day.

Love the night shot on the dock, the starburst effect is lovely.

 

[LuvGoldens]

Thoroughly enjoying the trip report Paul and Melissa! It sounds like Allie had an awesome birthday, can't think of a better place to celebrate a 5th Birthday than at Disney

Sorry to hear about your Grandfather's passing.

 

[ach222]

So sorry to hear about your family's loss.

Really enjoyed the dinner review. I passed it every time I wandered up to the lobby last week and it looks like a fun place, will definitely try and fit a meal in there next time.

We really enjoyed the boats to DTD and I'm a bit jealous of your shopping while Allie was asleep, we always had to contend with G running around like a crazy kid while shopping lol!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Thoroughly enjoying the trip report Paul and Melissa! It sounds like Allie had an awesome birthday, can't think of a better place to celebrate a 5th Birthday than at Disney

Sorry to hear about your Grandfather's passing.

Neat, we're glad you're following along and enjoying it. We had a great time, and we're glad we were there for her actual birthday day.

Thanks for the condolences. He was a neat guy and we all miss him. The services are next week, so things will be pretty busy until then.

So sorry to hear about your family's loss.

Really enjoyed the dinner review. I passed it every time I wandered up to the lobby last week and it looks like a fun place, will definitely try and fit a meal in there next time.

We really enjoyed the boats to DTD and I'm a bit jealous of your shopping while Allie was asleep, we always had to contend with G running around like a crazy kid while shopping lol!

Aww, thanks.

We are excited to read about how your trip went. We are considering going in Jan or Feb for our next trip, so it will be neat to learn more about WDW in the winter.

We weren't sure we'd get our quiet shopping time. All of our tricks from prior trips to get her to sleep hadn't worked for shopping time, but a long fun birthday day followed by a boat ride did the trick.

 

[GrandCalifornian]

I’m so sorry to hear about Melissa’s grandfather. It’s wonderful that Allie was able to really know him. I’m sure the mourning process has been rough; I wish your family as much peace in this as possible.

I love Allie’s birthday button! All the little hearts are so sweet. She is such a photogenic little girl.

The red Velvet cake looks delicious! I’ve heard such great things about Boatwrights, I’m glad your experience was so wonderful.

I’m glad you were able to recover your things! That could have ended quite badly.

I like Allie’s pirate imitation. Something about that boat ride is like a lullaby, for big kids too; I doze off every time.

That Stitch is TOO cute!

Glad Allie had such a great fifth birthday day.

Love the night shot on the dock, the starburst effect is lovely.

Eeek, we just noticed we missed your reply in the last multi-quote. Sorry about that. I thought the reply seemed short, that's because we missed one.

Thank you for your condolences. It has been hard since we were so close with him, but that really was a blessing. He was a great guy, and created a wonderful family.

Allie had fun decorating her button. She very much likes things to be "her way". She can be very photogenic, but then decides she is done with pictures and won't let you get any good ones. Fortunately we got a lot of good ones on this trip.

The red velvet cheesecake was delicious, and might have been my favorite dessert of the trip. It was excellent.

The big Stitch is cute, and now we're kind of wishing we had found a way to get him home, but then we'd have to find a place for him at home too, which wouldn't be easy.

It was crazy that we left our stuff at the restaurant, but they were so nice about it and had everything right there. If you're going to be forgetful, it is nice to do it at Disney. It was a great day.

The night pictures were fun to take, and it was nice to experiment with the settings on the camera and see a real effect on the look of the pictures.

 

[GrandCalifornian]

I started our last full day at WDW by getting up at 7:15 and uploading some pictures. Then I took a shower and headed out for a walk at 7:45. The dreaded DME info was on our doors, meaning that the trip was coming to a close.


I met up with Grandpa Jim, and we decided to walk towards POFQ. Grandma and Grandpa had stopped by there on the way back from DTD the night before, and Melissa wanted to try the beignets, so we had a destination for our morning walk.




We grabbed a pack of bengiets and walked back. On the way I stopped to appreciate some of the fun street names:


The walk to POFQ really wasn't that far, and I think from our room there were some POFQ rooms that were closer than some of the further POR rooms, since POR is much more spread out. They really are sister resorts.


After walking around a bit on the way back we got back to the rooms at 8:30. Melissa was getting up but Allie was still out. I went to The Mill to get a breakfast platter to share that had a small waffle, potatoes, sausage, bacon, and a biscuit. This worked well for us to all share in the room. Allie started stirring about 9:15 and she wanted to wear her new Elsa shirt we had gotten her for her birthday, which has a cool cape that attaches with velcro.

It was a nice lazy morning. If you hadn't figured it out by now but neither Allie nor I are morning people and I LOVED having my breakfast and coffee delivered to me during the trip.

Grandma decided to hang out at the resort for the morning while Grandpa went with us to the Magic Kingdom. We got to the bus stop at 9:45 and just missed a full MK bus. A second bus came at 9:53 though, and didn't wind up being super full. We arrived at MK at 10:08, and were off the bus by 10:10. We noticed that a lot more people were around at 10AM compared to 7AM the day before.


It really is true that you can beat a lot of crowds by getting there early. You should also notice by now Allie's hair in the pictures is exactly how it was the night before. I played lazy mom and just left it how it was and it was still pretty cute

We headed up Main Street to our first FastPass+, which was for the Seven Dwarves Mine Train.


I took a castle pic from the side, and managed to just avoid getting the crane in the shot.


We got to 7DMT, and even though Allie could have ridden it she didn't want to, so we did a baby swap with Grandpa and I riding first. I had the camera with me, so I took advantage and got some shots during the ride.








Then it was my turn! It is a great little rollercoaster. I don't think it's worth the insanely long line but it is nicely done and a fun ride.

When I rode with Melissa, I took the camera and got some more shots.






Next we stopped by Gaston's Tavern for a snack. Melissa thought a Cinnamon roll sounded good, so we shared one and it was very nice.


I couldnt leave without a cinnamon roll and it was delish. I know some people don't think the one at Gaston's is as good as the old one on mainstreet but I disagree. It is amazing.

Then we had just a few minutes before our long awaited Fastpass + window opened to finally meet Elsa, so we decided to take another ride on the carousel. It is still one of Allie's favorites.




Next we went and checked in for our ever Anna and Elsa meet and greet, which we had booked in July and were only able to get on the last day of our trip. We were surprised to see the standby wait was only 65 minutes, but were glad to walk right up.

Allie seemed indifferent to meeting them until we were escorted inside and she actually saw Elsa. She was pretty darned excited and was so cute.








What's next after meeting the Queen and Princess? Check back in the next update for more face painting, the resort monorail loop, and an afternoon at Epcot...

 

[kastoney]

Getting DME on your door really is the worse isn't it? The thrill of getting it at home opposed to the let down of departure is a real let down.

Mmm beignets for breakfast. Reminds me of being in New Orleans and having a quick walk to cafe du monde. How nice to take advantage of both resorts.

Your 7 dwarfs pics are great, thanks for sharing.

Love Allies cape shirt. Where did you get that again DTD? So glad she finally got to meet the frozen gals.

Can't wait to see what else the last day has to offer.

 

[MissMaryQC]

The Un-Magical Express is never a happy site.

Love the street signs, too funny!

Nothing like takin’ it easy on your final day in WDW and who doesn’t love breakfast in bed?

MK looks much more crowded, and it’s only 10 AM! Guess those early hours are key.

That stupid crane! I know its necessary for the holiday décor but man do I hate it!

7DMT looks like such fun! Great photos on the ride, and I love the shot of Melissa pre-boarding.

That cinnamon bun looks divine! Sounds like a perfect midmorning snack to me! :thumbsup:

What a great picture of Allie on the carousel; she’s darling.

What a great photo of Allie and Elsa (where Elsa is kneeling down) I’ve heard she’s a little cold but it looks like you guys got a good one! Great family shots with the Queen and the princess too. I’m glad Allie enjoyed meeting them.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

very nice of you to walk to get the beignets. We've stayed a few times at POFQ when I was a kid and really liked it. Good to know the walk from POR really isn't that far as that is one resort we have been considering for the future

Great pictures from riding 7DMT - I do really like how you kinda zip around Fantasy land and see the various castles and other landmarks in the background. I really liked it - but agree that the waits it is drawing are not worth it. Still need to ride it at night though to compare

It is really something seeing the look on kids faces when it hits them they are in the room with the real Anna and Elsa - glad you had a nice meet and were able to get the FP+ for it!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Getting DME on your door really is the worse isn't it? The thrill of getting it at home opposed to the let down of departure is a real let down.

Mmm beignets for breakfast. Reminds me of being in New Orleans and having a quick walk to cafe du monde. How nice to take advantage of both resorts.

Your 7 dwarfs pics are great, thanks for sharing.

Love Allies cape shirt. Where did you get that again DTD? So glad she finally got to meet the frozen gals.

Can't wait to see what else the last day has to offer.

Yeah, it feels like no matter how long we stay we spend a good portion of the trip dreading that door hanger.

The Beignets were good, and the walk was fairly quick, and pretty in the morning.

I'm glad you liked the 7DMT pics. It was rare to have the big camera out on a ride, but it was the perfect ride for it since it is nice and smooth,, and relatively calm.

I think we picked up Allie's shirt at the World of Disney Store at DTD, but we saw them a few places. She really loved it, although the cape suffered a bit in the washer.

The Un-Magical Express is never a happy site.

Love the street signs, too funny!

Nothing like takin’ it easy on your final day in WDW and who doesn’t love breakfast in bed?

MK looks much more crowded, and it’s only 10 AM! Guess those early hours are key.

That stupid crane! I know its necessary for the holiday décor but man do I hate it!

7DMT looks like such fun! Great photos on the ride, and I love the shot of Melissa pre-boarding.

That cinnamon bun looks divine! Sounds like a perfect midmorning snack to me! :thumbsup:

What a great picture of Allie on the carousel; she’s darling.

What a great photo of Allie and Elsa (where Elsa is kneeling down) I’ve heard she’s a little cold but it looks like you guys got a good one! Great family shots with the Queen and the princess too. I’m glad Allie enjoyed meeting them.

Yeah, seeing the door hanger is a bummer but it reminds us we have to fit everything else we want to do into that day. We did a good job of it this time.

We were glad we didn't have to rush anywhere this morning, even if we missed out on quieter time at MK. We had FastPass+ for both 7DMT and Anna and Elsa, so the crowds weren't bad.

We're so used to the crane from going three years in a row during September. We were able to catch it down a couple of times too so it wasn't in every castle shot.

Allie loved Anna and Elsa, and Melissa shot video with the camera so we captured her excitement. The still photopass pics came out neat too. We all had a good time there.

very nice of you to walk to get the beignets. We've stayed a few times at POFQ when I was a kid and really liked it. Good to know the walk from POR really isn't that far as that is one resort we have been considering for the future

Great pictures from riding 7DMT - I do really like how you kinda zip around Fantasy land and see the various castles and other landmarks in the background. I really liked it - but agree that the waits it is drawing are not worth it. Still need to ride it at night though to compare

It is really something seeing the look on kids faces when it hits them they are in the room with the real Anna and Elsa - glad you had a nice meet and were able to get the FP+ for it!

I really do like walking around the resort in the morning, and heading to pick up beignets gave me a destination. I'd do it more now that I know it doesn't take long.

We really liked POR and the Alligator Bayou section in particular because it feels rural and spread out, and there is a lot of neat scenery around. POFQ was more compact, but felt more like a regular hotel to us. It's all good though, and many people prefer the smaller more compact resort.

I'd like to ride 7DMT at night too. I really think Allie would like it because it was so gentle, but she was too scared this time. I think it was less intense than the Barnstormer, which she rode but didn't enjoy.

Allie was excited to show Elsa and Anna that she had them on her shirt and charm necklace.

 

[woodynjessiesmomma]

Finally caught up! Sounds like a great trip.
We are going this September and celebrating ODS's 7th birthday on the 23rd so this is great inspiration for what sounds like a fun trip.

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Your dinner at Boatwright's sounded great - especially the fabulous CM's! I love Allie's birthday button!

I have a similar picture of myself holding a giant Stitch. I love that guy.

Oh, the dreaded Magical Depress envelope. It's always such a bummer to receive that on your door! It sounds like your morning got off to a nice start anyway - I'd love breakfast being delivered!

Two prime attractions to kick off the morning! I'm glad Allie enjoyed her M&G with Anna and Elsa - and I love her shirt!